Uploading a DJ Mix to Youtube

How to upload your DJ Mix to Youtube legally?

After Google, YouTube is the most used search engine in the entire world. If you have music laying around that you love, it makes sense to share it online with billions of people. Uploading content of which you own all the rights is never a problem. When you want to share your fresh DJ mix online, though, it becomes a bit more difficult.

Nobody likes to have their mix taken down by YouTube because of a copyright claim. You put a lot of hard work into your mix and are eager to share it. But if there is only one artist or record label that doesn’t allow his work to be uploaded, your video is doomed. If you aren’t careful, your whole YouTube account might even be banned completely.

Luckily the good folks at YouTube have come up with a system that prevents us, good online citizens, from getting copyright strikes. YouTube has a search engine where you can search for all kinds of music that are floating around in YouTube’s database. The next time you arrange a DJ set go to this link and search for all the songs you plan to use.

Possible outcomes

There are 3 possible outcomes if a song shows up in this database.

Fully copyrighted. The label doesn’t allow anyone to upload their music and your video is taken down immediately.

The music is blocked in several countries. YouTube gives you the number of countries the content is blocked in.

The song is copyrighted but uploading is allowed. Advertisements may be showed however of which the income goes straight to the original copyright owners.

Check if condition #3 applies and you’ll be fine. Checking the database in advance saves you a lot of time in the future and prevents your account from being banned.

My name is Melvin Rijlaarsdam and I am a music producer and mix engineer from Leiden, The Netherlands. I am currently studying composition & music production at the Utrecht school of arts.
While I like all kinds of music, I primarily focus on indie rock, folk, singer-songwriter and electronic dance music..